The client gave biometrics in Korea and the approval letter was issued three days later; the visa was received at the airport on arrival in Canada.
The study permit had been applied for from inside Canada. After the first-stage approval the client returned to Korea for biometrics, then received the second-stage approval at the airport on entry, coming in with both a work permit and a study permit. The write-up described this as the firm's first case in the 2020 COVID season of a study permit being switched at the airport, and said the remaining steps were the child's free schooling and the spouse's accompanying application.
The write-up said entry at the airport was not difficult and that the two documents looked at most closely were the letter of acceptance and the final approval. It noted that since October 20 entry restrictions had been eased for foreign nationals holding a letter of acceptance from a DLI institution, and that a 14-day quarantine, arranged and paid for by the traveller, applies on arrival.
On biometrics, the write-up stated they can be given in Korea but not inside Canada, that in-Canada extensions and permanent residents are exempt, that switching from a companion or visitor visa to a study permit requires them, and that switching to a work permit was exempt as a COVID-era measure.